A marketing partner can take a lot of pressure off of a loan originator – with marketing and lead generation taken care of, mortgage pros can focus on closing loans. But not all marketing partners are created equal – and one that isn’t careful about compliance can cause real headaches for originators.

“With regard to using third-party vendors to handle your marketing – whether it’s a small campaign or a large campaign – it’s very important for loan originators and bankers to vet their vendors properly,” said Zach South, president of Best Rate Referrals. “With all the new regulation – especially with some of the fines the CFPB has levied against banks due to noncompliant marketing pieces – it becomes even more important for an originator or banker to make sure the vendors they use are compliant and have their best interests at heart.”

If your marketing isn’t compliant, it won’t matter that it came from a third-party vendor – you’re still going to be dealing with regulatory headaches. With that in mind, South said mortgage pros should make sure that any prospective partners were sticklers about compliance.

“One of the best ways to do that is to make sure you’re working with a vendor who is also a licensed mortgage banker or broker,” he said. “If you do that, you know that not only is your license protected, but the vendor is going to have your best interests at heart, because their license might come under scrutiny if they do anything that’s noncompliant.”

South said that with compliance more important than ever, mortgage companies are increasingly vetting their marketing partners .

“I see in the next two to three years, depending on how the market shifts, that banks and mortgage companies are going to deal only with companies that hold those same licenses, because it protects them,” he said. “It makes sure that anything that is sent out or generated on the bank’s behalf is 100% compliant and won’t come under any CFPB regulation or scrutiny in the future. So whether you’re using a small mail house down the street or a large company like ours, you need to make sure that everything that goes out with your name on it has been vetted. That’s the best way to protect yourself when you’re buying marketing.”